#Mytravels: The charm of a temple city

To a rank outsider like me, it does appear that the capital of Odisha is overshadowed by it's more popular surrounding places - Puri and Konark. However, appearances are horribly and consistently deceptive. Dubbed as the 'Ekamra Kshetra', owing to the presence of numerous mango-groves at one point of time, this temple city and especially the Old Town area has a lot to offer for the keen eye and the praying hand. And so, I've had the greatest fortune of witnessing the brilliant architectural style of the Kalingas!


Raja Rani Temple, c.11th Century CE

Lingaraja Temple entrance (top) & vimana (bottom)

It was almost 5 o Clock in the evening when I've decided to go into the old town area after visiting the wonderful State Museum at Kalpana Square. I've returned from Konark and Puri, and got down at this Square very near to the railway station, one of the famous localities of Bhubaneshwar on the bypass connecting Cuttack with Puri and Konark. The public transport facilities are woefully inadequate, I did find few city busses route-numbered 603, but had to rely on Autos (within the city, shared) and jam-packed privately run buses (to Puri and Konark).

walk amidst the buildings and traffic, take a turn and suddenly you find yourself in an ancient era!


Ananta Basubed Temple

The Lingaraja temple and the adjacent Bindusagar Tank form the core of the old town area. This temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva predominantly, but symbolizing Hari-Hara friendship is simply a masterpiece of Kalinga architecture. It's Vimana - Deul is gigantic! There are conflicting views as to when the temple was built - one version attributes it to the Somavamshi King Jajati Kesari of 11th Century CE and the other dates it much earlier c.7th/8th Centuries BCE. In all probability, Jajati Kesari could have developed the already existing temple. With a continous drizzle from the skies, I walked along the large open Pradakshinapatha adorned with many sub-shrines. Interestingly, there is a seperate shrine for Nandi towards the left side of the Garba-Griha, unlike in Dravida temples wherein Nandi (Vahana of Lord Shiva) is placed opposite the Shiva Linga. At a stone's throw from this temple, there are many ruined temples dating to probably the same period but much smaller in size (Sampurnarajeswara temple, Subarnarajeswara temple, Maitreswara temple, Lankeswara temple, Babani Shankar temple etc). At some distance is a large temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, called Ananta Basubed temple. An interesting feature of most of these temples is that people invariably enter the sanctum-sanctorum (vimana-garbha griha) from the sides rather than straightly through the main entrance.

From RajaRani temple - Winding serpent pillar (top right) is a special feature of Kalinga architechture

Depiction of Saptamatrika Chamunda/Rakta Kali is also unique to Kalinga architechture. (left - From Brahmeswara temple (right - From State Museum)

And then, after scouting and savoring dishes at some street food stalls, I stopped my visit for the day, as the drizzle is now a downpour. Early next morning, I visited the Raja Rani Temple. Maintained by the ASI and with no deity, this is perhaps the second most important temple of Bhubaneshwar. The carvings on the Vimana of this temple are some of the best that I've seen. Brahmeswar and Rameshwar, two famous shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva are also nearby. Sculptures and carvings of some of these temples are relocated and can be seen at the State Museum. Then, I've visited the Khandagiri-Udayagiri caves located on the outskirts of the city. As I've said, transport is still a problem, but connecting share-autos took me first to Baramunda (Bharunda - another famous bypass junction of the city) and then to the caves. Carved by the Jain Emperor Kharavela in first/second centuries BCE, one of these caves contain the famous Hathigumpha Inscription in Brahmi-Prakrit along with other lesser known caves like Rani-Gupha, Ganesha-Gupha etc. With a Digambar Jain temple atop the Khandagiri hills, away from the hum and din of the highway, this location is pristine and exquisite.

An Emperor repents...from State Museum

Brahmeswara temple dedicated to Lord Shiva

The delicate symmetry between the traffic of Baramunda & Kalpana Square and the tranquility of Khandagiri-Udayagiri caves, the rustic, idyllic and historical soul of an old town caught in the body of a smart city, the numerous temples which transport us into Ancient Kalinga Era and of course the Samosas, Dahi-Vadas, Chhena-Poda (Roasted/Burnt Cheese), Rasagullas that I gulped down convinced me that perhaps sooner than later, Bhubaneshwar - Ekamra Kshetra could be a new World Heritage Site in India! This is the charm of a temple city!